The 25 Worst Passwords of 2014, Dissected

Every year, SplashData releases a list of the most popular passwords in use across the Internet. Albeit a list compiled from the passwords leaked online the previous year. This essentially makes them the worst passwords to use, or at the very least the most popular bad passwords.

This list is made up of the most popular passwords sourced from the 3.3 million exposed online in 2014. The passwords were sourced from those mostly living in North America and Europe, hence the lack of non-English words and phrases.

Morgan Slain, CEO of SplashData, said, “As always, we hope that with more publicity about how risky it is to use weak passwords, more people will start taking simple steps to protect themselves by using stronger passwords and using different passwords for different websites.”

That’s good advice, but right now we would rather focus on the list and what each of the passwords reveals about those people who use them. Hold onto your hats, as this could get particularly snarky.

25. trustno1

I’m guessing most people chose this based on its endless use in The X-Files. It’s probably the least stupid on the list, but “least stupid” does not translate into “sensible“.

24. batman

The irony here is that Bruce Wayne is sure to have had passwords far stronger than any of those featured on the list. Alfred, on the other, is almost guaranteed to use this as his password.

23. 123123

The first password on the list to consist entirely of numbers, which is never a good idea. Repeating the same sequence twice doesn’t help either, especially if that sequence is “1, 2, 3“.

22. 696969

Three 69s in a row may well represent a good night had by all, but that doesn’t make it a good password to use on the Web. Using three sixes also means you worship Satan. Probably.

21. superman

We’ve already had Batman so I guess Superman was always going to make an appearance too. Let’s not forget that Superman can turn back time by flying around the world, so passwords aren’t likely to be high on his agenda.

10. football

We’ve had favorite car and favorite animal, so why not favorite sport too. Sadly, this probably refers to American football, the dumb football, the one that only people in the United States call football. Shame.

9. dragon

I can only assume Game Of Thrones has something to do with Dragon making it onto the list. Or the movie version of The Hobbit. Or people’s sheer stupidity. It’s definitely one of the three.

8. baseball

Football, baseball, basketball, it’s all the same really: Meatheads playing with their balls in front of millions of salivating spectators. That doesn’t explain the password thing though.

7. 1234

Some people chose seven numbers, which is bad enough, but these people only chose four numbers. There’s no getting away from it, this is laziness of the highest order.

6. 123456789

OK, this is getting tiresome now. Nine is better than four and seven, but it’s still going to be cracked far too easily.

4. 12345678

3. 12345

2. password

If you’re using Password as your password then you should seek medical help at your earliest convenience. I’m serious, you need to see someone about that problem you have with your brain.

1. 123456

So, wait a minute. The first six numbers used in succession is the most popular bad password of 2014. Have these people got no imagination? No common sense? No idea of the sh**storm that will ensue when their password gets cracked?

Do You Use One of These Passwords?

Do you use one of these passwords online? If so, tell us why you do in the comments section below, obviously avoiding actually revealing which of the passwords you’re guilty of using and on which websites you use it. Unless you’re stupid, in which case, feel free to invite trouble your way!

"Sadly, this probably refers to American football, the dumb football, the one that only people in the United States call football. Shame."
Sorry, Bub, Canada plays the same "football" game (brain injuries and all) that America plays.

I don't use these exact passwords but there are one's I do use are no better.

Why? because I didn't want to have a password in the first place - most likely it's a forum I wanted to ask a question in or a site that won't let you do something without registering.

There's no important info to be found out about me, I'm not coming back so I don't care if you trash the reputation I haven't got under the equally imaginative handle I provided. Yes I could let Lastpass come up with something but why clutter it up with this kind of crud?

Mine is just a series of asterisks, so it's easy to use & remember when I'm typing it in. It's pretty secure as long as I don't tell anyone how many asterisks (8) or mention which nuclear weapons program I work for.